


Unwound by a Hair’s Breadth

by DayenuRose



Category: X-Men, X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Marriage, Married Life, Mr. and Mrs. X
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-22
Updated: 2019-04-22
Packaged: 2020-01-24 06:05:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18565444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DayenuRose/pseuds/DayenuRose
Summary: When even the simplest interactions with others require several layers of protection, Rogue finds it hard to relax, especially around others. After a long, stressful week, Remy helps her find a way to unwind without worrying about her powers.





	Unwound by a Hair’s Breadth

“Hello. Remy? Sugah, you home?” Rogue called as she entered their apartment.

The only response was the soft padding of Oliver’s feet as he emerged from the master bedroom. Their grey cat purred and entwined himself around her legs in an affectionate welcome home. Not to be outdone, the other two cats made their way from their favourite hiding spots to get in on the pets and treats. Despite the warm welcome from the feline entourage, there was still no Remy. It was probably too much to hope that he’d have made it home before she did. While, she’d spent the last thirty-six hours without sleep and on a rather intensive local mission, Remy had spent the better part of the week on the other side of the country. Kitty had promised her that Gambit was on his way in. Apparently way in didn’t mean home—yet.

She sighed, half in frustration, and more than half in weariness. There was nothing she wanted more than to curl up and spend the evening in her husband’s arms.

Remy, her husband. At last.

Sometimes she still found it hard to believe. She’d wanted this since practically the first time they met. She wanted it even when she’d told herself it was nothing but a nigh on impossible dream. Over the years, they had spent so much time denying their hearts’ desire, that now that it had finally happened, it almost felt like a dream. And, a good one at that. After so many nightmares, they deserved all the good they could manage. Right?

It had all happened so quickly. One moment they were guests at their friends’ wedding, and the next, they were the bride and groom. In all honesty, the whole spur of the moment nature of their wedding was probably the only way they would have ever allowed themselves to take that next step. If left no room for the fear and self-doubt that plagued their relationship over the years. She smiled as she traced the outline of her wedding band tucked under her gloves.

After making certain the cats had food, Rogue shrugged out of her jacket and crossed to the living room. Sinking into one of the plush chairs, she closed her eyes and exhaled slowly. No one crashed through the sunroof overhead, no one lurked in the shadows, and no voices rattled around her head. Maybe, just maybe, she could relax—for a few minutes at least. She didn’t dare push the thought beyond the merest possibility for fear that she might jinx this quiet moment if she dwelt on if for too long.

Slipping off her gloves, she unlatched the inhibitor bracelet and laid both on the end table beside her. Technically, with the bracelet, she shouldn’t need the gloves, but she was used to wearing them. Besides, with a thief for a husband, she knew the importance of not leaving fingerprints behind. And she had come directly home from a team mission. If the bracelet ever failed, or became unlatched while on a mission, she didn’t want to risk accidentally touching her friends and colleagues.

Thankfully, the bracelet wasn’t as draining as the collar had been, but it was no walk in the park either. The inhibitors left her drained and her head in an almost constant state of pain. No matter how long she wore the it, the pain never got any better.

Heh. She felt a bit like the Little Mermaid—the one in the Andersen tale, not the Disney version. In order to have a chance with the one she loved, the mermaid girl had exchanged her tail for feet. As the story went, with every step it felt like knives were tearing through her new feet. For the mermaid, the constant pain had been worth the chance at love, and Rogue found herself agreeing. She’d deal with headaches and so much worse if it came to that, as long as it meant she and Remy could touch without fear.

But, it had been a long day. Who was she kidding? It’d been a long week, made all the longer by Remy’s absence. (If she were to press the point, she’d have to admit it’d been a long life.) And for a moment, she just wanted to relax. To rest as herself. No inhibitors, no gloves, no fear.

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply.The headache that continued to thrum at her temples wasn’t solely inhibitor related, but she’d already known that before she slipped off the bracelet. It was probably due to the fact that her powers were acting up again. With her powers going all strange, it made more sense to leave the bracelet on most of the time rather than risk accidentally acquiring someone’s powers, even without a touch. Peace washed over her in the safety and privacy of her home. Before long, the pain settled into a dull throb and she lost track of time.

Rogue hadn’t realised she’d fallen asleep until the moment she woke up to the near silent footsteps of her thief. She stretched and yawned. “Welcome home, sugah. Ah missed you.”

“Sorry to wake you, ma colombe,” Remy said as he came up behind her. He placed a bare hand on her shoulder and pressed a kiss to the top of her head where her hair turned from brown to white. Instinctually, she pulled away from him.

She wrapped her hand around his still uniformed arm, redirecting his hand to the back of the chair and away from her. “Ah’m not wearin’ the inhibitor, Remy. Give me a moment.” No matter how she tried, she couldn’t hide the deep-seated weariness that radiated out from the very core of her being.

“Non. I have a better idea. You keep restin’, I’ll be back.”

She recognised that mischievous promise in his voice. The one that suggested maybe she ought to put the bracelet back on, no matter what he said. He’d always been reckless when it came to her. He pushed things to the limits, always wanting to touch her even when they both knew just how dangerous that could be.

“Remy...”

“Trust me, chére, trust me.” And there it was, that smile that had charmed him out of more dire situations than they’d had hot dinners.

“Always.” Her heart fluttered in anticipation as it did every time he uttered those words.

When Remy returned a moment later, he’d divested himself of his coat and cowl, though, like her, he still wore his uniform. He’d put on new gloves, ones that entirely covered his hands, and he brought her hairbrush with him.

She raised an eyebrow. This wasn’t what she was expecting. “You’re going to brush my hair, Cajun?”

“Oui. Now relax.” Gathering her hair, he freed it from where it was pinned between her back and the chair and began brushing out her long locks. Patiently he worked a day’s worth of snarls from her hair. Even after the tangles were gone, he continued his tender ministrations. His dialect was strong as he murmured sweet nothings while he worked.

“Mmm,” she practically purred. She leaned back into the chair as though she might phase through it and get closer to her man.

Careful that his skin never made contact with hers, he switched to massaging her scalp with skilled fingers that knew all the right places to ease the tension building under her skull. The longer he played with her hair, the more she relaxed. The pain that had throbbed at her temples gradually lessened until it disappeared altogether.

Deftly Remy separated a small lock of her hair from the rest and began to braid it in a loose plait. It slipped from his fingers as he reached the end. “You know, after my team debriefed, Kitty said...”

Rogue groaned. She seriously couldn’t take another mission right now. “No more _Kitty said_! Can’t we have just one night to ourselves?”

Remy returned to his gentle caresses, his fingers moving almost idly through her hair. “As I was saying, chére, Kitty said we could have da weekend to ourselves. Dat is, as long as the end of the world doesn’t happen in the meantime.”

“That sounds nice.” Rogue mentally took back half of what she’d been thinking about doing to Kitty if their fearless leader had planned to send them back into the field before Monday. “Do we have plans?”

Since the wedding, they had so little time to themselves, she wondered if they actually knew what to do when there wasn’t a crisis around the corner. No, take that back, she knew exactly what they should do.

“Well,” he drawled, “I was thinkin’ we might start with some dinner, mebbe a little candlelight, and see where t’ings go from there.”

“Dancin’.” She left enough suggestion in the word so he would know that she wasn’t only referring to the kind they could do in public.

“Sounds perfect.” He leaned in, his breath warm against her ear. The lurid edge to his voice confirmed that he comprehended exactly what she’d meant.

She melted into his touch, wishing his caresses would never stop. Her man truly had magic hands. He felt so good. The back of his gloved hand brushed along her jaw line to her chin. Without a pause, he switched to tracing down her throat with the tip of his finger. She shivered in pleasure at his touch as his hand drew lower. Costume and gloves prevented them from actually touching, but the promise was there.

“Sugah...” Her voice was thick and she tried to remember the reason she ought to warn him away. She tilted her head back so she was looking him right in his face. Red gleamed from under half lidded eyes, as though he was enjoying the sensation of touch just as much as she was. If either one of them moved even a fraction of an inch, their skin would touch. 

“Yes.” The word was a whispered breath against her lips. A promise of things to come.

“Careful.” It was all she could manage. She fumbled for the end table until she found her gloves. Reaching for his hand, gloved fingers intertwined with gloved fingers.

“What if I don’ want to be careful?” He’d never stop pushing the limits. And, she didn’t want him to.

“Later,” she drawled. “But, first, it’s your turn.”

Before he knew what was happening, she caught him by the front of his uniform and pulled him up and over the chair. Remy didn’t try to fight her. Instead, he went with the momentum and somersaulted over her. He landed on the floor by her feet. She wrapped her legs around his torso, keeping him in place.

“What do you have in mind, chére?” Without missing a beat, he worked off her boots and tossed them to the side. He traced a light pattern against the sole of her foot with the tip of his fingers.

“Ah told you, sugah, it’s your turn.” Rogue snatched up the brush and began working it through his hair.

Remy leaned back against her legs and hummed happily. Resting the back of his head on her knees, he watched his wife. His red eyes met her green ones.

“Je t’aime, mon coeur,” he said in a husky whisper.

“I love you too.” Rogue pressed a kiss above his temple, dangerously close to his exposed skin. He quivered in delight at her daring, sending a similar sensation up her spine. Who knew that when she finally allowed her thief to steal away her heart for keeps, that it would make her the happiest woman in the world. 

 

 


End file.
